Hospitals and healthcare providers associated with high maternal death rates will face licence revocation under a new directive from the Ministry of Health, Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale announced on Tuesday.
The warning comes as findings reveal that a majority of health facilities are ill-prepared to provide safe deliveries, raising concerns about negligence and poor care standards.
Duale launched the Kenya Quality of Care Health Facility Assessment Reports and the RMNCAH+N Investment Case, highlighting critical gaps in maternal and newborn healthcare. He said the government is taking decisive action against facilities and practitioners whose practices put mothers’ lives at risk.
“When expectant mothers are dying on your watch, your medical licences are of no importance to us. The findings show that only four out of ten health facilities in the country have the capacity where expectant mothers can effectively deliver,” Duale said.
The CS criticised the growing reliance on remote consultations, where doctors attend to patients through phone apps rather than being physically present. He said the Ministry will conduct a nationwide assessment to identify malpractice and enforce accountability.
“Some doctors who have been using the Practice 360 App from their bedrooms to discharge patients can no longer do so. They must now be within 500 metres of the health facility for the app’s OTP to work,” Duale added. The app is designed to track healthcare workers and manage pre-authorisation claims efficiently.
Medical Services Principal Secretary Ouma Oluga emphasised that hospital licences will only be renewed for institutions with capable staff and low maternal mortality rates.
“Competency and performance must go hand in hand. You can’t be a surgeon who doesn’t take clinical notes. We have observed this even among senior doctors who do not follow laid-down procedures and guidelines when treating patients,” he said.
The report identifies postpartum haemorrhage as the leading cause of maternal deaths, with Tana River, Garissa, West Pokot, Elgeyo Marakwet, Machakos, Homa Bay, Siaya, Wajir, Kilifi, Murang’a, Makueni, Migori, and Turkana counties having the highest fatalities. Kenya’s maternal mortality ratio remains at 355 per 100,000 live births, while neonatal mortality is 21 per 1,000 live births.
Between 2017 and 2024, almost all expectant women attended at least one antenatal visit, while two-thirds completed four visits.
Skilled birth attendants assisted 89 per cent of deliveries, 61 per cent of births occurred in health facilities, and nine per cent were by caesarean section. Postnatal care reached 83 per cent of newborns and 78 per cent of mothers.
Challenges in maternal and child health include insufficient training, poor referral systems, lack of emergency care, limited uptake of services, and inadequate access to family planning.
Weak nutrition services, uneven health worker distribution, and dependency on donor funding—causing frequent stock-outs—also hamper service delivery.
The RMNCAH+N Investment Case 2025/26–2029/30 estimates Sh460 billion (US$3.54 billion) is needed over five years, starting at Sh79.59 billion (US$612 million) in 2025/26 and rising to Sh105.79 billion (US$814 million) by 2029/30.
Maternal and newborn care will receive over 40 per cent of funding, followed by immunisation (18 per cent), child health (12 per cent), gender equality and violence prevention (8 per cent), and family planning (6.7 per cent).
Health Director General Patrick Amoth said the investment could save nearly 28,000 children, 4,611 mothers, and prevent over 11,000 stillbirths in five years.
The reports, produced with counties, private and faith-based organisations, and development partners, will guide improvements in health facility readiness, workforce skills, and service quality.
“These reports reaffirm our commitment to build a healthcare system that meets the expectations of our citizens and sets a benchmark for quality care across the region,” Duale said, noting alignment with the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda and Sustainable Development Goal 3.
Key recommendations include boosting facility capacity, reclassifying facilities appropriately, standardising clinical care, implementing a national human resource strategy, and ensuring continuous professional development. “Investing in quality healthcare is not just a moral obligation; it is an economic imperative,” Duale said.
